Writing in the Genres of the Web

Do you have a blog? Do you contribute to a fan wiki about your favor- ite TV show, movie, or book series? Do you tweet? If you do, you may be thinking I don’t need no stinkin’ style manual. But wait!!!! Maybe, just maybe, you will find some advice about improving your blog or managing your wiki useful. And if the above paragraph is Greek to you, you will find an intro- duction to some of the genres of the web helpful. The web is not a blank piece of (virtual) paper waiting to be filled with content! It is a network of communities, each of which has its own expectations, its own values, and its own strategies for success. In this first section, we examine some of these communities and their preferred genres. In addition, because the web is a big community in itself, you should also be thinking about how you can promote your writing in the greater community of the web. To help you, we have included sections on using , Digg, , and RSS feeds to promote your writing and manage your reading.

What Is a Blog? What about Tumblr? What about ? Are “Notes” on Facebook the Same as a Blog?

I am confused. Are all these things blogs?

It’s complicated. In some senses, yes—all of these writing spaces could be described as blogs, which blend opinion, news aggregation (posting links to news articles or columns), embedded images, video, and, and, and . . . and they allow readers to comment. But following some definitions, not all of these spaces would be called blogs. In their most typical form, blogs are easily updatable sites that collect a series of posts in reverse chronological order (i.e. newest post first at the top of the page), allow comments, and are often orga- 6 Genres of the Web 7 nized by tags. (Notice the wording there: a blog is made up of multiple posts, not multiple blogs as folks new to the word sometimes claim.) Even though a Twitter feed or Facebook Notes page may fit many of these traits, if you said, “Hey, you should check out the new post on my blog,” the listener is most likely to think that you are talking about a site created on , Wordpress, Typepad, or another site like it, not a section of your Facebook profile. More on that below. The presence of comments is crucial to blogging. Comments make blogs a social, often conversational form of writing, so you should en- able the comment feature of your blog. Having comments builds ethos.

Figure 1. Writing professor Steve Krause’s blog. Note how user comments are featured as an important part of the site on the right hand side.

But be mindful of comments, especially if anyone can post one (such as someone that does not have an account) because it may dam- age your ethos if those comments are not monitored, are completely off topic, or spam. Spammers and their spam bots are always coming 8 Web Writing Style Guide up with clever ways to get their seedy casino and male enhancement products out there, and they’ll often try to mimic real people. If you see a comment that says “Great post!” and has a link to a casino site, delete it quickly. Otherwise, real people may see it and think you don’t pay attention to your comments. (So why should they bother posting?

Who Writes and Reads Blogs? Blogs are often written by one person, but they can be written by two writers, a team of people, or even a whole community of contribu- tors (for example, the popular community blogging site Metafilter has about 50,000 members). The cost of a blog may be underwritten by the writer (no lunch is ever free) and placed on a free blog hosting site such as Blogger, Twitter, WordPress.com, or within a corpora- tion’s main web site. The Wall Street Journal, , Mashable, and magazines like Spin have blogs and people assigned to writing entries for them. At the same time, many people blog for themselves such as those using the easy-to-publish site Tumblr or those who download the open source version of WordPress and install it on their own server. If you write on the Internet, you may have a particular audience in mind, but there will be untold numbers of second- and third-level audiences. And generally, all will have the ability to comment on your blog posts.

But You Didn’t Answer the Bit about Facebook Notes Ahh, Facebook. As you know, Facebook, is a social networking site— a virtual space that walls off “friends” from the rest of the Internet. Only those who you have “friended” will see your Facebook Notes unless you designate that the entire universe of Facebook “users” can read your Notes. In this respect, Notes are much like Internet blogs. Is it wise to allow all Facebook users the ability to read your Notes? As with all Internet writing, it depends on what you post, and what you want others to read. Therefore, be sure to read how to safeguard your privacy on Facebook, just as you would for any other kind of Internet activity. Facebook Notes are great so long as you are primarily interested in your friends seeing them and not worried about keeping your Notes private. One big advantage they have is that since everyone is already Genres of the Web 9 on Facebook, you might get a lot more of your friends reading your Notes than you would if you posted them on Twitter or a blog. The downside is that people who are not on Facebook (or not your friends on it) won’t be able to see your Notes, and search engines won’t help people find your writing. It’s a trade-off.

Figure 2. Dennis Baron’s Facebook Notes. Facebook Notes are very similar to blogs, but are primarily intended to be read by friends on Facebook.

My Blog Sucks. Can You Please Help? There are millions of blogs. What will make mine stand out?

Know why you’re writing and who you’re writing it for. Although the stereotypical blog consists of a Rebecca Black-like ramblings of uninteresting personal events, there are also plenty of respected and thoughtful blogs out there on every topic imaginable. There are also bloggers who are paid by companies to blog about their products or services, as well as bloggers who work for professional news organi- zations. Most bloggers cultivate audiences by showcasing their per- sonalities and opinions. Even blogs about the latest gadgets, such as Engadget, are frequently humorous and irreverent, making them 10 Web Writing Style Guide enjoyable even for people who don’t care about the gadget or device they’re writing about. If you want to make your blog standout, take strong positions on a particular subject or theme and write in a colorful, fun way. The more fun you have writing your blog, the more likely it is that others will have fun reading it. For instance, if you’re a wedding photographer, you can blog about the weddings you attend and the inevitable funny incidents that ensue at each one. Combined with some funny photos and witty writing, this could easily become a popular blog. If you’re heavily into a sport, such as parkour or racquetball, you can keep a blog about local events and the people you meet there. If you’re work- ing the tech support desk at your university, you can blog about un- usual incidents and talk about how you fixed them (or why you failed to fix them).

What Not to Write About on Your Weblog Keep in mind that sometimes prospective employers or your boss might do a search to see what they can dig up about you. Even if you are post- ing something just for your friends, a group you belong to, or to ex- press yourself, remember that other audiences can potentially see what you write. Some of those people might have the power to hire you—or to put your application in the discard pile. Heather Armstrong is a blogger who was famously fired from her job for snarky comments she made about co-workers on her blog. Now she runs dooce, a popular mommy blogging site, and is laughing all the way to the bank. Don’t get fired posting things that make you or your company look bad. Don’t use your blog to vent about your crappy job or stupid boss. You may assume the people you insult won’t ever see your blog, but don’t count on it. If you’re not sure how someone you’re talking about will respond to what you post, it’s probably best to leave out the names and keep revealing details vague. You might work at Wal-Mart and enjoy making fun of the weird customers you see in your store, but if your supervisor sees it, you’ll be blogging for a living.

You Are Now a Part of the Blogosphere When first starting your weblog, you’ll have to develop your credibil- ity and personality to attract readers. One way to do this is to use the writing by other influential and widely read bloggers as “research” and Genres of the Web 11

“sources” in your posts. Provide direct links in your posts to those oth- er bloggers’ blogs. Such direct linking allows you to join the blogger community—the blogosphere—and will help to increase the visibility of your blog on the Web. Think about how good you’d feel if a fellow blogger linked to one of your posts and talked about how interesting or useful it was to them. Wouldn’t you be more likely to read that per- son’s blog and want to learn more about it? Find your niche in the blogosphere. Services like Technorati or Blog Search can be used to find blogs that deal with the same topics you write about. Start reading those blogs. Bloggers often in- clude sidebar links (called a blogroll) to other blogs of interest, often on similar topics. Then begin your participation: Post comments in response to blog posts that interest you. When you add a comment, there’s usually a place to include your name and the web address of your blog, which will encourage that blogger and all her readers to click on your name and check out your . Make valid comments and not just requests for people to come to your blog. Nobody likes beggars and whiners: “Please come look at me blog!!!!!!” will hurt, not help, your chances of building an audience. On the other hand, if you make intelligent comments, others on the site may get curious about you and check out your stuff on their own. You can also talk with other bloggers by responding to their posts with a blog post of your own. Be sure to include within your own post a link to the other blogger’s post. (Make sure to use the permalink to that individual post; you may also want to provide a link to the blog as a whole.) As your list of blogs that you enjoy reading grows, consider add- ing a blogroll to your own blog. Just don’t start begging to be added to someone else’s or expect them to reciprocate: “I added you to my blogroll please do the same!!!” Again, begging and whining about stuff like this will only make you look sad and desperate.

What Weblog Software Should I Use? WordPress.com and Blogger are two of the more popularly used free weblog services, and both could work well for a class that requires you to keep a weblog. Of the two, WordPress tends to be used more by more serious and professional bloggers. It may be the better choice for ethos if you intend to blog long term. While Blogger may be easier to use to start with due to its integration, simpler con- 12 Web Writing Style Guide tent creation and management interface, and template customization engine, you may eventually outgrow it’s more limited feature set. While Wordpress.com provides free hosting of a version of Word- Press that offers limited features, there is also the WordPress.org com- munity dedicated to sharing and developing WordPress as open source software. You can download the full WordPress version and install it on your own server or on a commercial hosting account that you sub- scribe to, giving you much more control over the configuration and hundreds of additional modules that you can use to expand the feature Figure 3. Twitter limits you to 140 characters, so make every character count. set. Installing WordPress on your own instead of using Wordpress. com, however, also means that you will have to keep up with security updates as they are released by WordPress to stop your site from being hacked. Other free hosted blog sites, like Destructoid, cater to specific types of bloggers (in this case, videogamers) and allow people to set up their own blogs there for free. This can be a good choice because there will be plenty of other like-minded bloggers there for you to talk to. In any case, you can always change your mind later, so feel free to experiment until you find something that fits

Learn More about Blogging If you do some searching on the web, you’ll find plenty of resourc- es on how to be a better blogger. If you are blogging for the class- room, Alex Reid’s Why Blog? Searching for Writing on the Web in Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing, Vol. 2, could be a very useful resource because it’s written by a writing professor who regularly blogs.

Twitter Only Gives Me 140 Characters!? What the Heck?

Twitter is everywhere! What does it take to become the next Twitter su- perstar?

We’ve already mentioned that Twitter is a microblog. To become a Twitter superstar, you need to decide on what your niche will be, such as politics, WoW, Halo, or gender studies. You must also decide on your level of interaction: How often will you post? Some people post once or twice a day, whereas others post dozens of times per hour. Genres of the Web 13 tent creation and management interface, and template customization engine, you may eventually outgrow it’s more limited feature set. While Wordpress.com provides free hosting of a version of Word- Press that offers limited features, there is also the WordPress.org com- munity dedicated to sharing and developing WordPress as open source software. You can download the full WordPress version and install it on your own server or on a commercial hosting account that you sub- scribe to, giving you much more control over the configuration and hundreds of additional modules that you can use to expand the feature Figure 3. Twitter limits you to 140 characters, so make every character count. set. Installing WordPress on your own instead of using Wordpress. com, however, also means that you will have to keep up with security One of the easiest ways to get more readers on Twitter is to provide updates as they are released by WordPress to stop your site from being people with your URL on Twitter (typically, www.twitter.com/[your hacked. username]). Much like getting more readers for a blog, it takes time, Other free hosted blog sites, like Destructoid, cater to specific types but if you’re diligent, your twitter followers will slowly grow. Well, that of bloggers (in this case, videogamers) and allow people to set up their is if you have great information that others want to read! own blogs there for free. This can be a good choice because there will Another easy way to gain a larger readership is to tweet, often. be plenty of other like-minded bloggers there for you to talk to. In any When others see you have good comments and posts, they’ll want to case, you can always change your mind later, so feel free to experiment follow you. Balanced with this, you should also have a profile that re- until you find something that fits flects your posting and your identity as “the writer” of the tweets. So, having a username like Hotbabe4u probably won’t get a lot of atten- Learn More about Blogging tion from a gender studies group. People like Twitter because the posts are short and to the point. It If you do some searching on the web, you’ll find plenty of resourc- takes time and practice to get good at it, but you can learn a lot from es on how to be a better blogger. If you are blogging for the class- studying other Twitter fans. How are they structuring their tweets? room, Alex Reid’s Why Blog? Searching for Writing on the Web in What types of tweets get the best response? And what ones don’t? Fig- Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing, Vol. 2, could be a very useful ure out why. Think of a tweet kind of like the chorus to a song or a resource because it’s written by a writing professor who regularly blogs. breath in a rap—remember you only have 140 characters to make your statement, position your argument (in context AND make the argu- ment), maybe relate it to others by using “replies,” “direct ,” Twitter Only Gives Me 140 and “hashtags.” See the screenshot below for an example of a mention Characters!? What the Heck? and a hashtag: The “@culturecat” is a mention (Figure 4). This means that when Twitter is everywhere! What does it take to become the next Twitter su- the owner of that Twitter account clicks her “mentions” button, she’ll perstar? see this Tweet in the list. “#c&w2011” is a hashtag. A hashtag is a con- We’ve already mentioned that Twitter is a microblog. To become a venient way for people to make sure their Tweets are listed together. If Twitter superstar, you need to decide on what your niche will be, such you’re at a conference or responding to a trendy topic, a hashtag can as politics, WoW, Halo, or gender studies. You must also decide on ensure you aren’t lost in the shuffle. your level of interaction: How often will you post? Some people post Most of us have heard how someone posts a tweet and it’s misread once or twice a day, whereas others post dozens of times per hour. or misunderstood by others. (Consider the times you might have had 14 Web Writing Style Guide this happen with text messaging on your phone.) This happens more often than you think. It takes time to get the hang of tweeting. Try to think about how someone will read your tweet without knowing the context in which you wrote it. You can also use Twitter as an information-sharing network. Some of the best tweets are those that direct followers to useful or fabulous content that they wouldn’t otherwise have heard of (often using a url shortener like bitly or Google URL Shortener to allow long links to fit into the short space allowed in a tweet). This makes a lot of sense— after all, aren’t you more likely to check out content shared by people you follow and trust, as opposed to whatever some big news network’s website thinks you might find interesting? A lot of people like Twitter because of the thousands of apps you can use with it. There are apps for every mobile phone and tablet, apps to integrate your tweets into Facebook, and much, much more. There are also widgets that you can copy and paste into your blog site to dis- play your tweets. If you can think of something you’d like to do with Twitter, chances are there’s an app for that. Tweeting can be fun, but if you want to be popular, don’t post stuff nobody wants to read. Does anybody really care what you had for breakfast? Also, it’s more impressive if you can write succinctly (using few words) rather than resorting to texting conventions like u for you. The superstar Twitter users have mastered the art of saying more with less.

Figure 4. The @ and # have special meanings in Twitter; learn to use them effectively. Genres of the Web 15

What Is a Wiki? Is It a Blog?

Wikis are collaboratively written by groups that seek to docu- ment and inform about a specific topic. Wikis can be private, open only to those in the group, or they can be publicly available (such as Wikipedia). Like blogs, wikis include comments and allow links, im- ages, and video. However there are some differences both structurally and func- tionally between blogs and wikis. Blogs are usually linearly arranged so that the most recent posts show at the top of the page, with archive links off to the side. Wikis are organized as a series of pages arranged to suit the people maintaining the wiki; a front page usually intro- duces the content of the wiki and typically includes a search box. In blogs, only authors of the blog can add posts, and only administrators of the blog may change or delete those posts; viewers respond in com- ments. Most wikis, on the other hand, allow any user to add or remove any content so your contribution might be deleted or changed in some way. Most wiki software includes some type of history so you can track when and by whom changes were made and, if desired, revert to an earlier version. The best wikis are sprawling collections of information on a topic the writers are passionate about.

My Wiki Is the Blair Wiki Project I don’t know where to start. How can I get this wiki moving?

Wikis are a form of crowdsourcing, a term that implies taking advan- tage of “the crowd” to grow your project. Of course, that means being able to appeal to a crowd and have some incentives in place to encour- age them to volunteer their time and energy to your project. So, the first steps to consider are who will most benefit from the wiki? Who has the most to contribute? Who is likely to have the time, knowledge, and skills necessary to participate? If you don’t have good answers to these questions, go back to the drawing board. A lot of wikis start off as local or site-specific projects, powered by friends or co-workers. For example, imagine you’re part of a local group that’s into snowboarding. You might launch a wiki that maps out the best spots for snowboarding, stores that sell equipment, and other such information that will interest your friends. If the project is successful on a local level, there’s a chance it might expand, as other 16 Web Writing Style Guide snowboarders from other towns stumble upon your work and decide to join in. Or imagine yourself in a Shakespeare class. You know there will be a big final exam at the end with questions from all the lectures and readings throughout the semester. You could get together with your classmates to build a wiki study guide. The idea here is that while no- body is likely to know all the potential questions and their answers, everybody should know or check some of them. A wiki like this can help you pool your resources and quickly write a comprehensive docu- ment—and probably end up with a much better study guide than any one student could complete by herself. Bear in mind that most people who use wikis read them but do not contribute. Those who do are very special and should be treated with respect and gratitude. Don’t act like you’re doing them a favor by providing the wiki for them. Instead, do everything possible to make it easy and fun for them to work on your wiki. Don’t be heavy handed with administration, and don’t try to micromanage every page. Try not to ever criticize someone else’s work, even if it’s bad. Instead, focus on praising good work and making sure people who do it know you’re aware and grateful for it. Send out personal notes to your contributors, thanking them for their work and pointing out good things about their contributions. You can also encourage your community to talk to each other by setting up discussion pages, and don’t get upset if the discussion isn’t always strictly on task.

Why Do Wikipedia People Keep Deleting My Stuff? Some idiot just deleted all my changes and hours of work! What gives?

Imagine barging into a room, announcing that the people there are idiots, and rearranging the furniture. Wouldn’t you kick that person out? The important thing to remember about wikis, especially active ones, is that they’re social in nature. Other people have put their best efforts into making it good, and they won’t appreciate an outsider making changes without first seeking their approval. If you really don’t know why people are deleting your edits, go to the “Discussion” area of the entry and ask. Tell the others that “Hey, I wrote this about that, but someone deleted it. Any idea why that’s happening?” There’s a lot of give and take going on behind the scenes, Genres of the Web 17 which really isn’t all that “behind” the scenes since it is made visible. If you know you are right, you may have to convince someone who has more clout, a more respected ethos. But if you provide the necessary evidence and rationale, your stuff may just become part of the record. It’s better, though, to preempt deletions by announcing your in- tentions first. Go to the discussion or talk page for the article you want to change, and read what’s there (in order to find out whether you’re about to walk into a minefield). Then, describe what you think needs doing on the page. If no one objects after a reasonable time (say, a day), go ahead and start making the changes. Also, when you do make a change, be sure to use the justification feature to explain why you thought the change was necessary. If you’re only making a small change, such as adding a missing period or correcting a misspelled word, click the “minor change” option. Most wiki people are happy to have you join their efforts, but only if you’re sensible enough to be polite and upfront about what you’re doing there.

Figure 5. Many wikis offer commenting features and encourage editors to discuss their work. The Threats to Sustainability of an Organizational Content Strategy wiki was created by students in a professional writing class at Michigan State University. 18 Web Writing Style Guide

On a side note, some wiki people are skeptical of students who are only there because of a required project or assignment. Even if this is the case, don’t announce it or act like you’re just there because it’s required. Don’t ask the community to help you with your project. In- stead, be sincere about wanting to join the community and contribute towards the project. A good rule of thumb for dealing with strangers online is to be ten times more polite and friendly than you normally are. If you go to great lengths to show respect and sincerity, you’ll be welcome on al- most any wiki. If you go in “guns blazing” and treating the locals like crap, don’t expect your edits to stick.

How Do I Get People to Write in the Same Style? I have a bunch of people using my wiki, but it’s making it really rough. How can I get all these people to write the same way?

On one hand, you can’t. On the other hand, as the text comes to- gether, new contributors may pick up on the existing style and begin to adopt it. Other contributors may notice the places where the styles don’t match, and over time, the text may self-correct. Even though the purpose and structure of wikis prevents you from having complete control over the text, you can edit the contributions where needed to improve coherence and consistency. Some wikis are entirely open, in which case, you are giving up con- trol as an author, but other wikis are set up with more editorial control. You’ll have to decide which best meets the needs for your project. Let the standards evolve organically if you can, then apply them retroac- tively to existing pages. Whatever you do, don’t make a bunch of complex rules before the wiki takes root. Doing that will only scare off potential contributors who will be worried they might accidentally break a rule or misunder- stand something. Remember, you want to make your wiki a friendly, welcoming place. If you come off as stern and quick to criticize or en- force your policy, you may intimidate the very people who would help you the most. A so-so wiki with lots of content and participation is better than a really awesome ghost wiki. Genres of the Web 19

What Are Reddit and Digg?

I’ve heard these can give a big boost to my readership. But how do I use them?

Reddit and Digg are social news or sites. The Internet is huge, and expanding faster than the jogging pants at an all- you-can-eat buffet. There’s just too much new stuff for any one person to keep up with. Social bookmarking sites rely on networks of special interest groups to find the best of the new stuff and report it back to the group. Once the item is available on the site, the rest of the group can vote it up or down. The idea is that the cream will rise to the top. It doesn’t always work out so well in real life, since there are ways to

Figure 6. Submitting to Reddit is a straightforward process, but you’ll need to be creative with your title and make sure you select a proper reddit com- munity. Reddit communities exist for virutally every topic, such as writing, gaming, and politics. 20 Web Writing Style Guide game the system (such as recruiting your friends to vote up your stuff). Still, the bigger networks have enough legitimate users to counteract these shenanigans. Before worrying about how these sites can boost your views, study them carefully, paying attention to what kinds of blogs or websites get the best scores and thus have the strongest appeal. You might study the top-ranking items for a few weeks or even months, trying to find similarities or patterns in what rises to the top. Equipped with that knowledge, you should be able to make your own work more likely to succeed with them. Keep in mind that nobody but you cares about how many views or comments you get. You might spend hours working on a blog post, just to find that nobody wants to read it. Whining, begging, or trying to trick people into viewing your site will only ruin your reputation. If you post on a social bookmarking site and the results aren’t good, don’t post about it again. Instead, go back to the drawing board and work on making your posts more appealing to the audience you’re trying to reach.

Fig ure 7. The Digg submission has an optional field for entering a descrip- tion of the site. Again, it is very important to word both the title and de- scription as accurately and succinctly as possible. You can also select an appropriate topic and screenshot for your submission. Genres of the Web 21

How Can Facebook Help to Promote My Web Writing?

I have a bunch of “ friends” on Facebook. How can I take advantage of these nitwits to help promote my writing?

In many cases, your friends and family will (hopefully) be the ones most likely to want to see your work. After all, they have a personal investment in you and would like to see you succeed. So, announcing your work on Facebook and posting links on your wall is a good way to start getting exposure. That may sound lame at first—you want a big audience of strang- ers, not your mom, cousin, and that friend from kindergarten you just reconnected with. Nevertheless, you now have the world’s largest so- cial network working for you. If your mom posts to her friends, and some of them post to theirs, pretty soon you have dozens or hundreds of people checking your work out.

Figure 8. Use Facebook’s search bar to find any existing groups dedicated to your topic. You can then join them and read what everyone’s talking about. If no group exists, you can create your own group and then invite anyone you think might be interested to join. 22 Web Writing Style Guide

Of course, if you’re trying to keep your work anonymous, steer clear of Facebook. Even the old “I found this cool thing online” might backfire, since you’re sending it to the very people most able to know it’s really you. You can also save time by using Facebook apps that will coordinate your efforts to let the world know about your most recent stuff. For instance, the Facebook app Networked Blogs can be set up to auto- matically update your Facebook and Twitter accounts every time you publish a new blog post, and you can set things up so every time you Tweet, it shows up on Facebook (or vice versa). Your first step for promoting your stuff on Facebook should be to find an existing group of users who are already interested in the topic you’re writing about. Connecting with like-minded people is a sure way to not only grow your audience but also improve your skills. Don’t just pester people to look at your stuff. Instead, spend time browsing their work, offering feedback (positive only). Be friendly and supportive at all times. As you gain the group’s respect, you’ll also be encouraging them to take your work more seriously and give you feedback on it.

What the Hell Is RSS?

I’ve heard that you can subscribe or something to RSS. Can you give me the lowdown, or do I need a PhD in Nerdology?

RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication.” The somewhat silly word “syndication” refers to the distribution of radio and television content to sta- tions who didn’t create the content but want to show it anyway. On the Web, content distribution is naturally easier—in fact, it’s “really simple.” All that is to say, when we’re talking about RSS, we’re talking about the delivery of content, or the question of how to get the Internet content you want brought straight to you, like your own personalized radio or TV channel. But let’s back up and talk about how RSS actually works and what it can do for you. A great explanation of RSS is in the video RSS in Plain English, produced by the fun folks at Common Craft. They describe how in the traditional model of Web browsing, people surf from site to site to site, looking for new content that they’re interested Genres of the Web 23 in. That model is like shopping on a busy city street, where you some- times find stuff you want, but you’re just as likely to find crappy fake watches and illegal DVDs of The Matrix as the stuff you’re actually trying to buy. RSS technology allows you to change your Web brows- ing to a model that’s more like online shopping, where you can stay home and have the things you want delivered instead of going out and browsing for them. With RSS, you can subscribe to the sites that you’re interested in and be notified in one central location (an “aggre- gator” or “feed reader”) when those sites have been updated. Instead of hopping from site to site in search of new content (“Anything new on this gaming site? Nope. Anything new on this music blog? Yeah!”), you can see all the updates in one spot. In action, it works like this: you go to the site of a feed reader like (one of the most popular) and set up your account there (with your Google account). Then, whenever you are on a page that supports RSS and you want to subscribe, you look for an image of an orange box. (Depending on your browser, you may see that image in the address bar when you’re on a page that has RSS support.) When you click it, you will be given the option of subscribing to the feed in Google Reader (again, a process that may look slightly different on different sites and browsers). After you’ve subscribed, every time that site posts new content, you’ll be able to read it on Google Reader, without having to bounce around to all kinds of different sites. Google Reader also allows you to organize your subscriptions into folders (like “humor,” “anthropology,” or “cooking”), however you want. We’ve talked about how RSS can benefit readers, but how about writers? It’s actually very, very important if you want to build an au- dience for your blog, wiki, or pretty much anything you do. If you don’t offer an RSS feed for people to subscribe to, you’re forcing them to have to actually visit your site to see your content—and fewer and fewer people are willing to do that. Simply put, if you don’t have an RSS feed, you’re already invisible to a big chunk of your potential read- ership. Almost all wiki, blogging, and content management software al- ready have RSS feeds built-in, and it’s usually “on” by default, so there’s nothing to worry about. Just make sure you see the orange square when you visit your site. If you don’t see it, check the options and help menus to figure out how to turn it on. If you’re coding your site from 24 Web Writing Style Guide scratch, you’ll need to look into XML and learn how to properly tag your stuff. (Try the W3Schools RSS Tutorial.) Most software will let you choose what you want in your RSS feed. Typically, you’ll have the option to just show the page title, the page title and a teaser, or the full posts. Usually, you’ll want the second option, since you want to tease the audience enough to have them ac- tually visit your site. If you don’t care about that, go with the third op- tion. The first option is the most restrictive and will probably reduce your visitors. Once you know your RSS feed, you can promote it using Feed- burner. Feedburner will let you track your subscribers and learn some things about them, such as where they’re from.

Figure 9. Google Reader is a full-featured RSS reader with tons of features.